Raymond Gafford, who retired as the club Professional at Fort Worth Ridglea in 1976, played only one match as an amateur. He turned pro at age 20, first served at Ridglea from 1937 to 1950, then took a job at Dallas Northwood in 1951. He returned to Ridglea in 1954 and remained there.

Gafford was a player of national note. He participated in 14 U.S. Opens, five PGAs and two Masters Tournaments. He advanced to the quarterfinals of the 1950 PGA, only to lose toJimmy Demaret, and won the 18th place money in the 1951 U.S. Open. , both of which qualified him for the Masters Tournament. Gafford was the Oklahoma Open champion in 1946 and won the Southwest Open, a popular Wichita Falls Pro-Am, in 1943 and 1944, plus the Texas PGA in 1949. Gafford, who loved to teach, was proud of his star pupil, Michelle Berteotti, now on the LPGA Tour.

There is a Ray Gafford Classic at Ridglea, which has two courses, one for men and the other for the family. Gafford was president of the Texas Section in 1950 and 1951.